Thursday, December 20, 2007

Well, I was going to try out Hero Of Allacrost today, but I couldn't get the damn thing to run. See, I used the Windows binary, and it just wouldn't work. I know, I know. This site mainly focuses on the Linux side of things, and Hero Of Allacrost runs on Linux, so why didn't I try it on Linux?

Two reasons. One, I'm sick of compiling things. Two, I'm sick of going through the process of adding repositories to my sources.list (I use Ubuntu). Just provide a damn compiled binary in the source download. It may work, it may not, but at least it's there, at least I know you tried.

Now the rest of this rant has nothing to do with Hero Of Allacrost. You're off the hook (except for the Windows binary not working thing, that's a pain in the ass). But shouldn't this be easier? I mean it's not 1998 anymore, more and more users are coming to Linux, and thanks to Ubuntu and other distros with similar goals, they aren't used to having to compile anything. And even though it's slightly easier, they aren't used to adding repositories to their package managers either.

I know how to compile things, and have been doing so for quite a while, but I'm sick of it. I just don't want to have to do it just to use a new piece of software. In this day and age it's not right to give every other system a simple downloadable binary package, and just provide the source for Linux users.

Hell, you've already made a .deb file to stick in your repository, why not just offer the damned thing for download? If the answer has anything to do with additional libraries only available from your repository, then you're doing something seriously wrong. It's a game, package the whole thing together.

C'mon folks. This isn't rocket science. If it was, various pieces of the rocket would be scattered all over the world, with directions where to find the other pieces in an entirely different location altogether.

Thursday, December 13, 2007

So it turns out two things I love are going away forever, and both in the same month. First I hear that the Monster Hunter servers are shutting down at the end of the month. Then I hear the same thing is happening to Space Cowboy Online.

I realize that neither of these games have ever been as popular as a lot of games out there, but this is an end of a somewhat golden age of gaming for me. Both Monster Hunter and Space Cowboy Online have been invaluable forms of entertainment for me for the past few years, games I never tired of no matter how many times I'd go back to them.

Strangely enough (or not, really, if you've been reading AYE long enough), it's Monster Hunter that's got me down the most, even though I'll still have the offline component available, while SCO is just plain going away. I've literally had dreams about Monster Hunter before. Yeah, I know, that's weird.

I feel even worse for the poor souls who've just recently bought Monster Hunter. I've met a few people online over the past week or so who had only just purchased the game and were blissfully unaware of the impending server doom. Makes me glad I bought the game the day it came out, but I sure do feel for those folks.

Well, there's really nothing to do now. All the online petitions, letter/email campaigns in the world aren't going to get either game back online. So, all that's left to do is to enjoy the hell out of them while they're still around to enjoy.

Thursday, December 06, 2007

Anyone wondering about last week's no post, will be glad to know that it was due to an injury (well, you'll be glad to know if you're sadistic). The week before that was postless as well, but it was Thanksgiving's fault.

This week I decided to continue with the free FPS theme and take another look at Warsow, a game I've played and enjoyed in the past. While it's only moved up to version 0.32 since the last time I looked at it, it's definitely continued to improve on what was already a solid base.

Mainly, there's more of everything. Especially maps. Last time I played Warsow, I think there were four or five maps, and maybe two gametypes. My memory could be fuzzy, but I don't remember much more than that. This update is the equivalent of taking one of those little (but tasty) hor d'oeuvre sandwiches and turning it into an actual sized sandwich. Same great flavor, and lots more of it.

I'm glad to see more people online. Warsow has got a lot of gameplay niceties to back up its stylish presentation, and it's nice to see some people agree. Still, momentum seems to be gathering more slowly than I'd like, so if you enjoy the game make sure to tell your friends.

In my opinion, Warsow is simply one of the best free Quake based shooters out there.